Oldies but Goodies - Neutral colors

Before this Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge, I had never been wondering about neutral colors much. I wear a lot of black and I love grey which are two of them, but beige, taupe, cream, brown, ivory, even white are not on my personal list of colors at all. I even have a very difficult relationship with beige, for example, which is just putting it nicely that I avoid it at all costs.

The definition of neutral colors is that they are not on the color wheel. They are muted shades that look calming and complement the colors well that are on the color wheel, in fashion, but also in interior design.
What about jewelry, though? For me, it's much easier to use neutral colors in jewelry than bright colors because I always feel they can be worn with anything that way.
Let's see what the JAC members have come up with, and don't forget, this is just a small selection.

1 My Bijou Life
2 RioRita Jewelry
3 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4 Cat's Wire

Oldies but Goodies - Geometric shapes

Wow, time is racing and another week has gone by already without me being creative, well, except for a custom pair of spike bauble earrings.
I'm just glad we have the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge to remind me not only of my own creativity, but more so of that of others.
Our theme was geometric shapes and we really got to see some amazing beauties!

How many basic geometric shapes are there? Obviously people don't necessarily agree on the number, some say there are four - circle, triangle, square, and rectangle - others say six and add rhombus and trapezoid. As the math genius that I am not, I'll stay out of that.

I do remember, though, that we once had to make a piece of jewelry in school. The plan had been for us to learn how to use a simple tin-lead based solder. I made a pendant consisting of a triangle, circle, and a square if I remember right. It came out pretty lousy, but had a definite mod vibe which worked well as we were still barely in the 70s.
Anyhow, I guess geometric shapes in jewelry had already fascinated me then.

These following examples are so much better than my pendant was. Enjoy!

1 Cat's Wire
2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 My Bijou Life
4 RioRita Jewelry

Oldies but Goodies - More bracelets

Do you like to wear bracelets? In that case, you will love what I have brought along from this week's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge.
Once again there is such an amazing variety in techniques, materials, and style, and yet my selection isn't even showing everything that has been entered.
Which one is your favorite?
I am in love with the fantastic hand painted elephant bangle (whose design process and WIP pictures Dawn had shared with us while working on this years ago), but I would also gladly wear any of the other items!

1 and 2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 and 8 RioRita Jewelry
4 and 6 Cat's Wire
5 and 7 My Bijou Life

Oldies but Goodies - Breaking out

Although I had taken a timeout from blogging, the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge has been kept going over the last few months.
Now it's time for me to share my selections with you again.

Our topic in the last week was "Breaking out".
Artisans and artists are only human. Many of us like their comfort zone, and it's always tempting to stay inside it, especially if the result is something you have already had success with. It can never hurt to take a little step outside the box, though.
The challenge was to show something that was unusual to make, because it was different in color, shape or style we are used to, for example. So we got shown some first attempts at new designs or techniques, and now I'll be sharing some of them with you.

1 RioRita Jewelry
2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 beYOUteous
4 Cat's Wire
5 My Bijou Life

Oldies but Goodies - Celestial again

In August 2017, the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge's topic was "celestial". Back then, we shared stars, moons, and the sun. Some of these classic celestial bodies are also featured this time, but we also have colorful planets, clouds in the sky, and astrological signs.
You see, even if we repeat a topic, there is always the chance of something completely new turning up.
Some of these pieces even I had never seen before and I'm nosy as heck when it comes to my fellow JAC people's work! ;-)
I hope you will enjoy seeing them as much as I did.

1/5/9 Jewelry Art by Dawn
2 and 6 Cat's Wire
3 and 7 My Bijou Life
4 and 8 RioRita

Oldies but Goodies - Fog and mist

I'm fascinated by fog, but it also makes me nervous.
It's one thing to look out over a landscape beautifully covered by mist or being stuck in your car in a big bowl of "pea soup" (as it happened to me once on New Year's Eve) or even worse, in smog like the deadly Great Smog of 1952 in London which people thought was just the ordinary fog Londoners have to deal with.

Today's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge is only about the beautiful kind, though. To some of my bead loomed silhouette pieces I love to add wafts of mist to the scenery, for example, but it's also amazing how some stones or other materials seem to emulate mist or fog.
Here's my selection for this week, I think I picked a few real beauties.

1 Jewelry Art by Dawn
2 Cymberrain
3 Cat's Wire
4 RioRita
5 My Bijou Life

Oldies but Goodies - Play with me

A new week, a new Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge.
Do you play with your jewelry? Twist a necklace, play with a fringe or dangles, touch the stones, shake the head to let your earrings fly, play with a spinner ring or just spin a ring around your finger ...
If you answered this question with a no, I suggest you try it, it's fun. Sometimes it may help you to calm down if you are nervous or you just satisfy the playchild in you.
I have a necklace that is so long that I can do a lot with it, especially in meetings, and sometimes I wonder if it makes others nervous to watch me. Maybe we should hand out "play jewelry" for everyone before meetings?

From the many entries I chose five today. Which one would you choose for a meeting? ;-)

1 My Bijou Life
2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 RioRita
4 Cymberrain
5 Cat's Wire

Oldies but Goodies - Beads

What is a bead? Wikipedia says that a bead is a small, decorative object that is formed in a variety of shapes and sizes of a material such as stone, bone, shell, glass, plastic, wood or pearl and with a small hole for threading or stringing.
Beads can also be addictive. So many shapes, so many colors, so many ways to use them!

Just a few of these ways are represented by today's collage of items from the last Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge.
We have hand painted beads, big and small ones, handmade beads from silver, different colors, glass, wood, stone ... and still this is just a very small glimpse into the world of beads!

1 and 10 Cat's Wire
2 and 3 My Bijou Life
4 and 7 RioRita
5 and 6 Jewelry Art by Dawn
8 and 9 Silver Jewellery Girl

Oldies but Goodies - Fresh

I thought I didn't hear right when I was told last week that 30° C (86° F) had been predicted for Sunday.
Guess the choice for the new Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge topic hadn't been too bad - it was "fresh" as if it was meant fight off the heat lurking outside, just waiting to get me ;-)

Fresh has so many more meanings beside cool, though, that this wasn't a very difficult challenge. It can mean anything from new, pleasant, not salty, not artificial, relaxed, and more depending on the context.
The easiest thing to do was to show fresh colors, but in one entry the word has a different meaning ... cheeky. Can you guess which one that is? :-D

1 My Bijou Life
2 Cymberrain
3 RioRita
4 Jewelry Art by Dawn
5 Cat's Wire

Oldies but Goodies - Shapes

This post for the last Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge is dedicated to my math teacher in 7th grade. You tried, Mr. Haasl, you really did, but no matter how much it is said that girls can do math just as well as boys, I just wasn't one of them. It wasn't just math, I also struggled with chemistry and physics - and to be honest, I wasn't interested in exploring science's depths myself - but I think geometry probably caused my only true breakdown in school. You comforted me, you encouraged me, and I'm sorry that it didn't work because you were really one of the good ones, and a nice person and neighbor as well until you passed away much too early.

You, my dear readers, don't have to explain anything or calculate or prove now, though, you can just sit back and look at the shapes we are bringing you with today's challenge. Aren't I a nice person, too? :-D

1 Jewelry Art by Dawn
2 My Bijou Life
3 Cat's Wire
4 RioRita
5 Silver Jewellery Girl

Oldies but Goodies - More wire

Wire has always been a big topic in JAC, but so far we have only used it as a topic for the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge once before. Let's change that today.

Wire is an incredibly versatile material and there are many techniques to work with it, not only in jewelry, but also for other purposes, from flower stands or filters (have you ever heard of the wire weaving loom?) to wire netted kitchen utensils and more from Kyoto (called Kanaami).
You will find wire wrapped, woven, crocheted and knitted (including spool and Viking knitting), done in macramé and other techniques in jewelry.
This goes way back, thousands of years. You don't necessarily need many tools for working with wire, just pliers and a wire cutter are enough, you don't need heat, you don't have to solder or cast, it can be done pretty much anywhere, and you can combine the wire with all kinds of materials, gemstones, beads, found objects, or leave it as is.

These are only a few of the pieces entered in this challenge. Enjoy.

1 Jewelry Art by Dawn
2 Silver Jewellery Girl
3 Cat's Wire
4 RioRita
5 My Bijou Life

Oldies but Goodies - More cabochons

Cabs, cabochons. I've talked about them before and we had a Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge with that topic a few years ago, too. I'm sure we could do several more with all the cabs that are in the drawers of our members, loose or already added to jewelry.
Cabochons were the earliest way to treat gemstones before people developed the cutting of stones. They usually have a flat back and a polished and rounded front, no facets. Opaque stones are made into cabochons because there's no sparkle which is enhanced by facets. Nevertheless, you will find faceted opaque stones as well, just as you find translucent stones that are not faceted, but made into cabs.

There's a family story about a ring given as a gift. The young recipient was not happy because the ring had an opaque cabochon. I guess most young girls prefer a bit of sparkle or at least did so when I was young, eons ago ;-) It took me very long to acknowledge the beauty of opaque cabs.

People use different techniques to incorporate cabs in their jewelry, bezel or prong settings, wire wrapping and weaving including netting, wire crochet or knit, PMC or polymer clay, even macramé with cord or wire.
Cabs can have all kinds of shapes, too. They come as ovals, rounds, square, rectangular, drops, but also freeform. Lapidary artists have endless fantasy!

The JAC members shared so many beauties that I had a hard time to pick for today's collage, therefore I have a bit more for you today ;-)

1/7/12 RioRita
2/9/11 Cat's Wire
3/8 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4/6/13 My Bijou Life
5/10 Silver Jewellery Girl

Oldies but Goodies - Soft

I know I have missed a few Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenges in my blog, mostly because I'm struggling with frustration about the whole Covid thing (I know I'm not alone with that), but I'm back now with this one.
The topic was "soft" which could be anything, soft material like fabric, cord, or felt, soft colors or even a soft look of the design itself.
We are happy to welcome a new member with her beautiful Sakura necklace, too. I think it works both for the soft colors and the soft look.
I hope you'll like the other designs as well.

1 Silver Jewellery Girl
2 My Bijou Life
3 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4 Cat's Wire

Oldies but Goodies - Easter eggs and more

This week's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge was about Easter ... white and colorful "eggs", pastels, flowers. I hope you'll like my little collection.
And can someone take those chocolate eggs away from me now, please? ;-)

1 and 2 Cat's Wire
3 My Bijou Life
4 RioRita
5 Jewelry Art by Dawn

Oldies but Goodies - Blooming

Spring is definitely around the corner in our hemisphere.
To celebrate this, the topic for this Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge is inspired by the blooming that has been going on all around us.
My plan had been to take some pictures in our little garden to complement this post, but it's cold out there and I just can't bring up the motivation right now.
Instead I will be giving you these beautiful blossoms that our members shared to get you into the right mood!

1 The Crafty Chimp
2 My Bijou Life
3 Cat's Wire
4 Beyouteous
5 Jewelry Art by Dawn
6 RioRita

Oldies but Goodies - More black and white

Black and white - a classic combination. Of course it would have been mean to demand from our members only to show black AND white pieces for the new Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge, but if black or white (with merely a hint of color here and there), the collage all brings them together nicely, don't you think? Of course there's more to see if you click through to the challenge.

1 Cat's Wire
2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 RioRita
4 My Bijou Life
5 The Crafty Chimp

Oldies but Goodies - Favorites of 2020

I don't think I have to say much about 2020. You all know that it was not a fun year, and that is putting it extremely nicely.
The topic for this week's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge was to pick our favorite pieces from that year to remind us that you could still find some beauty in it. There is a wonderful collection of personal favorites in that post, so you should really click through to see all of them.

For the collage I could only pick a few, to whet your appetite, so-to-speak ;-) I hope it's working!

1 My Bijou Life
2 The Crafty Chimp
3 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4 RioRita
5 Cat's Wire

Oldies but Goodies - More jasper

Some years ago we already had a Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge with the topic jasper. Back then I told the story of the first tumbled rock I bought. I could edit that post now to say that I finally made something with that rock, a humble jasper that was the first one to let me see the beauty of non-sparkly stones.

Now we are back with a new challenge and new kinds of jaspers. There are so many varieties and one is more beautiful than the other. I hope you will like what we have done with them.

1 RioRita
2 The Crafty Chimp
3 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4 Cat's Wire
5 My Bijou Life

Oldies but Goodies - Hot

Last week we were cold, this week we are smoking hot at the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge. This is a kind of heat even I can get behind!
Sorry for keeping it so short today, but the needle is calling me to a project and I have to get out of this procastinating mode! ;-)
So, without further delay, here are our hot beauties.

1 Cat's Wire
2 Jewelry Art by Dawn
3 My Bijou Life
4 RioRita
5 The Crafty Chimp

Oldies but Goodies - Cold

Last week there wasn't a blog post because I was not able to create a collage. I have been using an online photo editor for many years now, but with their new Flash free version the developers have gone into a direction that caused endless frustration. When working on last week's collage, I finally had enough. My subscription was about to end shortly, so I decided to end it right there and then. It made me very sad because of my favorite features, but it can't be helped, sometimes you just have to know when to say goodbye.
Why am I telling you this? I'm trying out a new editor which in parts still is a Beta version as well, though, and the collage templates don't offer the possibilities (yet, I hope?) that I need and used to have. So I'm asking you to bear with me as I have to work with what I have.

This week's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge was all about the cold. I chose the topic on a cold day when I was tired and grumpy and couldn't seem to warm up. Isn't it nice how something beautiful can be the result of a grumpy day?
Please enjoy my small selection. You better do or Jack Frost might get you! ;-)

1 My Bijou Life
2 Cat's Wire
3 and 6 RioRita
4 and 7 The Crafty Chimp
5 Jewelry Art by Dawn